


Concrete Shoes and Cliches

by indiepjones46



Series: Time in a Bottle Ficlets [2]
Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: AU, Barry Whump, Blood, Cold, Ficlet Collection, Gun Violence, Humor, Kidnapping, Kids say the darndest things, Len is a Crime Lord, Len to the rescue, M/M, Minor Violence, More Tags Pending, Multi, POV Barry Allen, Time in a Bottle Universe, Violence, cheesy mobsters, coldflash - Freeform, curse words
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-19
Updated: 2017-04-25
Packaged: 2018-10-21 00:45:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10674180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/indiepjones46/pseuds/indiepjones46
Summary: Trouble has come looking for Barry courtesy of a disgruntled, former mob boss under Len's employ. Shenanigans ensue.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: don't own or profit from trademarked stuff...blah blah blah....
> 
> Notes: I've had this idea floating around in my head for some time now. I hope you enjoy this next little ficlet in this series! I'm already having a grand time! My sweet friend, lutavero, I hope you approve!

“’Scuse me, Mr. Allen, but I gots a question,” a deceptively innocent little voice called out above the crowd.

Barry’s eyes lit up with excitement. When Caitlin had first pressed Barry into doing monthly tours for local schools in their interactive exhibits at S.T.A.R. Laboratories, he had begged to be let off the hook. He had argued that his work as The Flash wouldn’t allow him to commit to such a responsibility, but Caitlin would not be swayed. She had basically shamed Barry into taking on the task by reminding him that he had a vested interest in the Labs succeeding financially since he owned them and paid their salaries from the profits. He had capitulated quickly after that, but from the first tour, he had fallen in love with the groups of kids that trooped through the lobby. They were often rowdy and excited when they arrived for their prescheduled field trip to the Labs, and Barry was sucked into their infectious awe. He used that connection with the kids to draw them into the wonders of science, and he soaked in their eager questions and replied with intuitive language that they would understand. The tours had become so popular, in fact, that the Labs were already booked up for the next year.

Barry glanced down to the nametag on the little girl’s shirt. It was a custom-made tag that was designed by H.R. Wells for just this purpose. The tag was shaped just like the emblem on his Flash suit, and in childish blue handwriting, it read “Alexis.” Barry offered the little girl a warm smile, and replied, “Yes, Alexis, what is your question?”

The little girl cocked her hip to the side and placed her little hand on her hip. Her “s” sounds whistled through the gap between her front teeth as she said, “My mama says you got you a boyfriend. I heard her tell my auntie that she saw of a video of you two kissing on Facebook. She says you was at that croaky bar, and that you was singing like a young Elvis Parsley.”

Barry felt the color drain out of his face. In a fraction of second, Barry was able to translate her kid-speak into intelligent information. Just two weeks ago, he and Len had gone on a disastrous night out on the town with Cisco, Caitlin, and Len’s chaotic sister, Lisa. After a tense dinner, they had gone to a nightclub called Siren’s Lounge that was one half dance club and one half karaoke. Thanks to a drunken Caitlin, Barry had ended up on the stage singing “Unchained Melody”. At the conclusion of the song, Len had met him at the stairs to the stage and pulled him in for a passionate, and public, kiss. Barry had never imagined that anyone was recording that night, but it appeared that someone had and had also posted it to Facebook.

Barry swallowed convulsively and stammered, “Uh, I didn’t hear a question, Alexis, but I would be happy to answer any you have about The Flash.” He gestured desperately to the 20 foot cardboard cutout of him in his suit that stood outside of the lobby gift shop. At this point, Barry had no qualms about using his alter ego to distract a tenacious 7 year old girl.

Alexis glanced at the cutout dismissively and tilted her head to the side and squinted her dark brown eyes. “My question is do you got a boyfriend, Mr. Allen? Do you kiss each other all the time?”

Barry locked eyes with the panicky teacher and pleaded for help, but none was forthcoming from the obviously fresh-out-of-college young man. At this point, her classmates erupted into loud exclamations such as “Ewww! He kissed a boy!” to “Are you two married?!” and along the lines of “I have two dads!” It was total chaos and pandemonium, and Barry just knew that Cisco and Caitlin were watching it all from the security cameras in the interior lab. He was never going to hear the end of this.

Desperate to take control back of the situation, Barry held his hands up and shushed everyone. When he was sure he had at least 75% of their attention, he addressed Alexis directly. “Okay, I understand your curiosity, Alexis, and I’m going to give you an honest answer. After I tell you, though, this topic closed and I won’t discuss it further. Deal?”

Barry could see the evil twinkle of mischief in her eyes, but she grinned her gap-toothed smile and said, “Deal.”

Now, Barry had everyone’s attention in the lobby. He could feel the heat of embarrassment flushing his face, but his voice didn’t waver as he said clearly, “Yes, Alexis. I have a boyfriend. And, no, we don’t kiss all the time. Just some of the time.”

The kids erupted into giggles, shouts, exclamations, and rude noises, but none of them appeared to be traumatized or even scandalized. They just looked like a bunch of first graders having fun. To Barry’s surprise, he laughed along with them for a moment before he managed to calm them all down and continue the tour. Surprisingly enough, Alexis kept her word, and the rest of her classmates were easily distracted by the 3D reenactment of the particle accelerator explosion. The remainder of their hour together flew by quickly, and though Barry had thoroughly enjoyed his time with the kids, he was more than ready to see the last of the little troublemakers.

Barry inwardly groaned as he saw Alexis dawdle until she was the last one out the doors. Her classmates and teacher were already loading on the bus, but the little girl had trailed behind with intent. Barry could read it all over her impish little face. He steeled himself for the worst and offered her a brittle smile. “I hope you enjoyed your visit, Alexis. You better catch up to your friends,” he hinted broadly as he waved toward the door.

The little girl grinned and said, “You know what else my mama told my auntie?” Without pausing to allow Barry a word in edgewise, she continued, “She said you was cute an’ all, but that your man made her ovaries explode!” With that pronouncement, she turned on her tennis shoe and ran out the door with her laughter trailing behind her like smoke.

Barry stood there, mouth ajar, for several stunned moments as he tried to wrap his mind around what had just happened. Finally, he shook his head to clear the static and managed a weak laugh as he muttered, “Well, she wasn’t wrong about Len. He makes me explode all the time.”

Before Barry could turn away from the door, a sharp pain in his back alerted him to the presence of someone standing very close behind him. Just as he realized the source of the pain was the barrel of gun digging into his spine, a dark, sinister voice whispered in Barry’s ear, “Mr. Allen, I’m gonna need you to come with me. Real quiet like, see?” Before Barry could even tense his muscles, the guy continued, “You see that school bus out there with all those kids in it?”

Barry’s heart stopped in his chest and his eyes darted to the glass doors where he could see the school bus still parked in the loading zone. The bus driver was standing outside the bus and talking animatedly with a construction worker that had inconveniently blocked the bus in with his bulldozer. Barry knew with a terrible certainty that the construction worker was the armed man’s accomplice.

Barry nodded and forced himself to grit out, “Our construction ended months ago. I assume he’s one of yours?”

A hot gush of cigarette smoke-tinted breath accompanied with a harsh chuckle was his reply. “I guess you really are as smart as the news makes you out to be, Mr. Allen.”

Barry could feel his temper flaring up to melt the cold fear that had iced over his body. “What happens if I leave with you willingly?”

The gun barrel dug into his spine, and the speed force within him began to cycle through his body faster and faster. The man’s tone was smug and cocky when he answered, “As soon as we are on our way, my buddy Ray out there will get on his equipment and drive away with no one the wiser. Nobody gets hurt, and Ray doesn’t have to scare all those kids. How does that sound to you, Mr. Allen?”

Barry’s resolve hardened and he nodded his head before saying, “In that case, I will willingly walk out those doors with you. Fair warning, though. You better be telling me the truth, man, because it would not go well for Ray if he tries to hurt those kids.”

The goon gave Barry a subtle shove toward the door and sneered, “What are you going to do about it, Mr. Science Guy? Or, maybe you think your boyfriend is gonna get you out of this?” The goon huffed a derisive laugh and added, “We ain’t afraid of The Boss.”

That was all Barry needed to hear to understand the purpose behind the goon squad showing up at the Labs. This had nothing to do with The Flash or even meta humans. This was all about Len and his role as The Boss of an organized crime ring that encompassed Central City, Coast City, and now Opal City. Len was widely feared and respected by the criminal element of the cities, and he ruled them with a strict set of rules. None of his crew was allowed to cause physical harm or death to their victims, or the same thing would happen to the perpetrators. Len was a man of his word, and he controlled the seedier side of the cities with a scary precision and planning that would have put mobsters to shame.

Barry wasn’t worried about his safety. It was apparent that these goons had no idea that Barry was The Flash, and had likely taken him as a hostage to hurt Len. He also had no doubt that Cisco and Caitlin were already aware of the situation in the parking lot with the bus, thanks to Cisco’s intricate network of security cameras, and would take care of dispatching Ray while ensuring the safety of the students. Unfortunately, Barry couldn’t make a move of his own without his costume to protect his identity, but he also wanted to go with the goon to investigate who was behind the attempted coup of Len’s empire.

As Barry slid into the back seat of a non-descript black sedan alongside his kidnapper, he tried one more time to get the goon to come to his senses. “Are you sure you don’t want to rethink this whole thing? He tends to get a little cranky when people mess with me.”

The goon sneered and slammed the car door shut behind him. The silent driver in the front seat pulled away from the parking lot and headed toward the interstate as Barry’s kidnapper grunted, “That’s what we’re counting on.”

Before Barry could reply, the goon raised his gun and brought the butt of it down on his temple. Barry only had time to think _“Not again!”_ before the darkness consumed him.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **This story refers to an OC from the Time in a Bottle series. He was featured in [Running Down a Dream](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8684686/chapters/19909408) and he was a cheesy mob boss with cocky swagger. I couldn't help but like the character, and I've been playing around with revisiting him for a while now. Welcome back, Romero Moretti.**

Thanks to the rapid healing effects of the speed force, Barry awakened from knock on the head sooner than his captors likely realized. He had no idea how long he had been out, but he knew he was still in the moving vehicle. Without opening his eyes, he categorized his injuries, and was satisfied as he felt the last wash of pain exit his body. After only a few seconds more, Barry was fully healed and ready to eavesdrop on his captors. He needed all the information he could get before they arrived at their final destination, especially since his hands were handcuffed in front of him and he could still feel the goon’s gun digging into his ribs.

“Hey, Paulie,” the goon driving their getaway car called out from the front seat.

“What?” grunted Barry’s captor, who was apparently named Paulie.

“What do you reckon Romy’s gonna do when The Boss shows up for his piece of ass?” Goon #1 queried.

Paulie snorted thickly, rolled down the window, and hocked a loogie out of the whistling opening. Barry steeled himself not to react when some of the spittle blew back on his face. Barry suppressed his gag reflex, and forced himself not to move a muscle.

“Whaddaya think Romy’s gonna do, ya _gav_ _ón_?” Paulie asked incredulously. He still had the muzzle of the gun pressed into Barry’s ribs, but his attention was fully on the driver. “He’s gonna blow his head off. And how many times do I gotta tells you to stop calling Len ‘The Boss’? You know that Romy hates that shit.”

Barry could almost imagine the hapless driver shrugging his broad shoulders as he replied, “Sorry, Paulie, okay? You know I’m with the family on this, but I gotta admit that business has been good since The Bo- I mean, since Coldiron took over. We’re still getting paid on the regular, plus I don’t got to spend a shit ton of money on dry cleaning no more, because we’re not allowed to kill nobody. What’s so bad about that? That’s all I’m sayin’.”

Paulie shifted in the leather seat next to him, and Barry crinkled his nose at the smell of the cloying, hyper-masculine cologne that the goon had apparently bathed in. “You keep sayin’ shit like that, Dumbass, and you’ll end up just like Coldiron. Romy’s the rightful Boss of Coast City, not that Gold Coin Nobody. So, shut yer trap, and be ready for anything.”

Barry’s mind raced with the information that he had just overheard. He knew everything from just that short conversation. He remembered “Romy” with crystal clarity. On the very night he had been reunited with Len in Coast City, Romero Moretti had arrived with his crew with the intention of killing off their competition. Thanks to Barry’s speed and a lot of trust, Len was able to solve the crisis without bloodshed while also increasing his territory exponentially. Moretti had been made look like a fool in front of his men, and had been demoted as Boss. That was Len’s title now.

It sounded as if Moretti was poised to take another shot at reclaiming his empire. Something had changed to give the clichéd mobster the confidence to take on someone like Len. Barry had heard the rumors and the whispers from the lowlifes of Central City about “The Boss.” His title was spoken with reverence, and none of them would break their loyalty to him in order to reduce their sentences. Their reward was The Boss’s help with the best legal defense money could buy, and plenty of greased palms along the way to ease their sentence. Many of them knew the dark secret that The Boss was the Leonard Snart, aka Captain Cold, and their fear of his legend kept them in line. The ones that only knew him as Len Coldiron, wealthy real estate mogul, were all convinced that he was a meta human, and could kill them with just a look. Len thought that was particularly hilarious, especially since he was living with the most famous meta of them all.

Barry snapped out of his pensive thinking when the car slowed down and finally rolled to a stop. He considered feigning waking up, but opted to stay slumped over to see what would happen next. Big mistake.

“We’re here, Paulie. Whaddaya want to do with the kid?” the driver asked.

Paulie opened the back door and slid halfway out of the car before turning back to reply, “I’ll be damned if we’re gonna haul him. This kid is six foot tall and I’m not throwing my back out again on him.”

Before Barry could react, Paulie reached in and smacked Barry’s cheek with heavy, open-handed blows. Barry jerked back in shock and sputtered, “Stop it! I’m awake!” He rubbed his throbbing cheek with his bound hands and offered his rude captor a peeved look. “That hurt, you asshole.”

Paulie grunted and heaved his considerable bulk from out of the backseat. “On your feet, Mr. Allen, or I’ll show you the real meaning of hurt.”

Barry slowly and laboriously made his way to his feet as if he were nursing a splitting headache. He held his cuffed hands over the drying patch of blood on his temple to prevent them from noticing that the wound was healed and shuffled forward. Paulie followed behind him and guided Barry along with firm nudges from the barrel of his gun while the driver backed the car out of the alley and disappeared. Barry looked around furtively and could tell that he was being led through the back door of a dark, deserted restaurant.

As he ambled along to the prodding of the gun, he counted bodies as he passed them. There was an armed guard outside the back door and four more in the empty kitchen that were watching him warily as they played cards and smoked cigarettes. Paulie pushed Barry through the swinging door that separated the kitchens from the dining room, and Barry stumbled several steps before he could see his surroundings once more.

He was in a small, cozy restaurant with about seven round tables with red-checkered tablecloths. He counted one goon guarding the front door and window, and three more goons flanked around the perimeter of the room. There was one final man, sitting alone, at the center table. He was facing Barry, and he was leaned back in his chair with a cocky attitude of victory. In his left hand, he swirled a wine glass that was only a third full of a deep, burgundy wine, and his right hand was resting on the table within easy reach of his gleaming, black gun.

The man was gifted with sinister good looks. He was younger than most of the other men Barry had witnessed, but he wore the cloak of authority as if he had born with it draped across his wide shoulders. Something about dark, slicked back hair and his golden brown eyes reminded Barry of Milo Ventimiglia, but this man held none of the boyish charm or crooked smile that made Milo so charismatic. This man was too slick, too polished to pull it off, and his eyes were flat and emotionless like a snake.

Paulie pushed Barry closer to the center table before backing away to take up a position along the wall. Barry faced the man without flinching and said, “Moretti. You’re making a huge mistake. You have to know that.”

The man took a leisurely sip of his wine before he replied, “On the contrary, Mr. Allen. I’ve had over a year to plan for this day. See, I knew I had to find Coldiron’s weakness. His sister, though she was the obvious answer, was not the right one. It had to be someone that would crush his soul should they die. Someone that I could use to control him before I systematically destroy him and everything he holds dear. Thanks to the viral video that’s been making its way across the internet, I had my answer. That’s you, Mr. Allen.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I have a feeling this one may get a bit violent. Maybe a little messy. I do love me some action scenes! I'm writing quickly, friends, so I hope to have more for you tomorrow! Thank you to all of you, and I promise I will respond to your comments first thing in the morning. I don't want to interrupt my flow while the night is still youngish! Peace and kindness, y'all!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Awwwww, yisssssss. This one is for all my bloodthirsty ColdFlash friends!**

Barry’s stomach lurched and bile raced up his throat. He forgot for a heartbeat of time that he was The Flash, and even forgot that he could end this farce in less than five seconds should he choose to do so. He forgot he had any power at all as the image of Len being gunned down by this two-bit mobster lit up his imagination like fireworks. Barry’s knees buckled, but he forced himself to stand tall and unimpressed in front of Moretti.

Barry raised a skeptical eyebrow and replied tightly, “I’m trying to help you out here, man. You have no idea of the powers you are playing with here. Len Coldiron may appear to be a civilized criminal, but his mercy only extends so far. If I were you, I would let me walk out that door right now and pray that Len is in a forgiving mood. It’s your only way out.”

Moretti’s gloating expression melted off his face, and he snapped the wine glass down on the table top. His eyes narrowed and his lips were pinched with anger as he sneered, “You’re the one who has no idea what I’m capable of, Mr. Allen.” He snapped his fingers, and two goons peeled off from the wall and stalked toward Barry with menace. “However, I will be happy to educate you on the matter as soon as your boyfriend makes his grand appearance.”

Barry steeled himself as the two goons grabbed his arms and forced him down into a chair. In no time flat, he was tied to the chair with thick ropes that cut into his skin through the thin layers of his business casual clothes that he had donned for the kids’ tour. He was situated to Moretti’s right where he could view most of the restaurant and the nervous goons, but he only had eyes for the mobster. Thankfully, none of them seemed to notice that there was no open wound beneath the smear of dark, crusty blood along his face, and they didn’t bother to try to gag him to keep him from speaking. Barry rolled his eyes as he had the uncharitable thought that Moretti likely wanted Barry to cry and plead for his life, but the mobster was going to be sadly disappointed.

Barry decided that while he waited for his white knight to show up, he may as well find out as much information as he could, so he cleared his throat and asked, “You mentioned something about a viral video. What’s that all about?” He had a pretty good idea he knew which one, thanks to his illuminating conversation with the sassy Alexis.

Moretti, now that he was firmly back in control of the situation, picked his wine glass up and drained the contents before he deigned to answer Barry’s question. “Don’t be so coy, Mr. Allen. Surely you’ve seen the video for yourself? It was uploaded to several different websites including Facebook, Reddit, and Tumblr before it was shared and passed along to countless blogs and sites. It was quite touching, really. Apparently, you were crooning on stage at a karaoke club, and your besotted paramour was so overcome that he met you at the stage for a passionate kiss.” Moretti paused to run his eyes up and down Barry’s body dismissively before he added, “You must be magic in the sack to induce that kind of response from that cold bastard.”

Even tied down and under armed guard, Barry laughed derisively. “Sounds like sour grapes to me, Moretti. The last time I met you, you were whining about being denied a threesome with both Len and his sister. I can’t say I blame you for being angry at missing out on experiencing it for yourself. Len is definitely magic in bed, but I’m more like…lightning.”

Moretti’s face darkened with a thundercloud of anger, and he pushed his chair back to stand to his feet. He palmed his gun lovingly and made a great show of inspecting the magazine for bullets before he popped it back in and chambered a round. He towered over top of Barry, and affected a congenial tone as he said, “You’re a funny kid, Mr. Allen, and you got quite the mouth on you for someone in your predicament. In fact, you have a beautiful singing voice, too. How’s about you sing for me, huh?” He paused to allow his lips to curl up with sadistic pleasure, “I only need you to be alive. Not necessarily unharmed.”

Barry clenched his teeth and braced himself for what he knew was coming next. Moretti lifted the gun, took aim, and pulled the trigger without hesitation. The report of the discharge was shockingly loud in the small confines of the restaurant, but Barry had no time to notice the ringing of his ears. Instead, he was biting back a scream of agony as the bullet tore its way through his left kneecap and lodged itself deep inside between the joints of his leg bones.

Acidic bile rose in Barry’s throat, blocking the scream that tried to escape, as waves of hot, blinding pain radiated throughout his body. Even through the ringing of his ears, he could hear Moretti laughing as he called out, “What do you think, boys? Maybe our songbird has stage fright. How about we give him an encore?”

Barry could feel the speed force cycling through his body and racing to repair the damage, but with the bullet still lodged in his knee, there was little that could be done. Before he could muster any type of response, Moretti’s gun barked again, and another bullet tore through Barry’s right knee. This time, Barry’s vision dimmed and narrowed as he felt the blood run down his legs to turn his khaki slacks crimson. Beads of sweat dotted his brow, and lights were flashing before his eyes as he battled to keep himself from screaming his fool head off. He would not give Moretti the satisfaction of hearing him yell. He would rather bite his own tongue in two first.

Barry’s nostrils flared as he sucked in deep, panicky breaths that he blew out of his mouth as he tried to master the pain that continued to wrack his body. Somehow, in the midst of his agony, he couldn’t help but think that he had only himself to blame for this predicament. He had allowed himself to be taken hostage, because he foolishly imagined himself to be invulnerable to humans who did not know his secret. He could have stopped all of this back at S.T.A.R. Labs with a just a few seconds’ run, but instead, he had allowed his curiosity to lure him into this hell. Now, he was well and truly captive, because as long as those bullets were lodged in his knees, he wouldn’t be running anywhere. Even worse, he would be next to useless in helping Len escape an even deadlier fate.

Moretti lowered himself to balance on the balls of his feet so he could meet Barry’s eyes. The mobster’s face swam in front of Barry’s vision, and he blinked the moisture away to focus on him. Moretti offered him a chilling smile full of malicious glee before he drawled, “Color me impressed, Mr. Allen. I’m beginning to understand what Coldiron sees in you. I imagine your threshold for pain is what attracted him to you. I know it certainly has worked for me.”

He reached out to trail a finger down Barry’s cheekbone, but he pulled away from his touch. “Don’t…touch…me…you…asshole,” Barry forced himself to say through panting breaths.

Moretti’s laughter was full of wicked amusement. He stood back up to his full height and ruffled Barry’s hair with mock affection. “You’re in no position to be making demands, Mr. Allen. You may be the celebrity darling of Central City, but you’re in _my_ city now. Coast City has belonged to the Moretti family for over fifty years, and it’s time Len Coldiron learned that lesson.”

Barry could feel the blood from his bullet wounds begin to slow down to a mere trickle, but the pain was still nauseatingly present. He wasn’t sure if it was the blood loss or the fact that Moretti had unknowingly clipped Barry’s wings that set him off, but hysterical laughter bubbled up in his chest until his head was thrown back as he laughed with unhinged humor. Tears streamed from the corners of Barry’s eyes and his stomach hurt from pressing against the ropes each time he laughed, but nothing could dull the out-of-control hilarity that continued to peal throughout the room.

“What are you laughing at?” Moretti snarled, all traces of amusement gone from his face.

Barry didn’t have the breath to reply, so Moretti backhanded him with vicious force. Barry’s head snapped to the side, and blood sprayed out of his mouth to arc through the air. Still, the laughter didn’t stop, but his attention was arrested by the sight of a disturbance in the air appearing next to the goon guarding the front entrance. A bodiless arm reached through the distorted rift, grabbed the goon by the collar of his shirt and yanked him inside the portal before it winked out of existence. This caused Barry to positively cackle with mirth, because no one in the room even noticed that they were down a goon.

Moretti grasped Barry’s chin in a punishing grip and snarled, “Shut up! Is this funny to you? Do you really think that you’re going to walk out of here alive?”

Bubbles of scarlet blood popped against Barry’s lips as he wheezed with mirth. Over Moretti’s shoulder, he saw the portal appear once again before two more goons were dragged inside without a sound to announce their departure before the portal winked out of sight. Barry looked back into Moretti’s flat, golden eyes and gasped, “Alive, yes. Walk? Probably not.”

Moretti raised his fist to land another blow to Barry’s face, but a disturbance from the kitchen captured his attention. “Paulie! Gianni! Go see what’s going on.”

The two goons remaining were already on their way to the swinging door between the dining room and kitchen. Moretti retrieved his gun and pressed the barrel into the soft flesh of Barry’s cheek as he watched the two goons enter the kitchen with their guns drawn. Barry continued to giggle with drunken shock as they waited for word from the goon squad.

A few moments later, the door swung open and Paulie walked back out alone. His expression was twisted with horror and pain, and when Barry glanced down, he could see the source. Paulie’s gun was still in his hand, but the entire thing was encased in a large block of ice. He supported his iced over hand against his round belly with the other and stumbled forward as if pushed from behind.

“C-C-C-Cold…” Paulie chattered through blue lips.

Moretti’s gun trembled against Barry’s cheek as he snarled, “What happened to you?”

The swinging door behind Paulie began to freeze over with thick, crystalline ice before it shattered from the force of a thunderous kick. Moretti and Paulie flinched from the flying shards of the door, but Barry only laughed.

Through the hole where the door used to be stood a man. He was wearing a thick, fur-trimmed parka coat, and his eyes were hidden behind round, black goggles. In his right hand, he aimed a metallic weapon that glowed with iridescent blue light and whined with charge. The man nudged Paulie forward with the barrel of the gun until they were only a few feet away from a shocked Moretti.

The newcomer lifted his goggles up to rest on his forehead and offered Moretti a chilling smile. “He just told you what happened to him, Romy. Cold happened to him. Just like it’s getting ready to happen to you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Captain Cold is in the HOUSE! Poor Moretti. I hardly knew ye.**


	4. LEN'S POV: Time for Cold

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Sorry it took me so long to update, but I think you'll forgive me. For those crazy kids out there that begged to hear from Len, this one is for you.**

LEN’S POV:

_Earlier that day…_

Len was reviewing legal documents with his Cleaner in his offices in Central City when his phone rang. He rolled his eyes and almost ignored the phone call from Cisco. Len’s pride was still smarting from the beating they had heaped upon each other not less than two weeks past during that disastrous night at the karaoke bar, and the fact that they had called a truce shouldn’t mean that Len had to talk to him.

Unfortunately, the fact that his little sister was pregnant with Cisco’s hellspawn meant that Len didn’t have the luxury of ignoring Cisco’s phone calls, so he answered it brusquely. Cisco’s news had not been good, but it had nothing to do with his chaotic little sister….this time. No, this time it was Barry that was in trouble, and this time, it was likely Len’s fault.

It took him only minutes to arrive back at S.T.A.R. Labs. When he had gained the inner labs, he found Cisco jumping from one computer to another as his fingers flew over the keys. Caitlin’s eyebrows were pinched with worry as she spoke on her cell phone with hushed, urgent tones. Lisa was scrolling through her phone and laughing as she sucked the yogurt off her spoon.

“What did you find out?” Len snapped as he strode over to the vid screen where surveillance footage was playing.

Cisco’s tone was all business as he reported, “The construction worker left shortly after the car with Barry in it drove away. The bus left just after that, and I didn’t see anyone follow them.”

Caitlin ended her phone call and added, “That was the school. The kids have arrived back safely. Joe and CCPD are on the trail of the fake construction worker.”

Len nodded. “What about the man that Barry left with? Have you identified him yet?”

Cisco shook his head distractedly. “No, facial recognition is still running, but we didn’t get a good shot of his face. We’re hoping to know more once CCPD apprehends his accomplice.”

The sound of a spoon scraping the bottom of a yogurt cup diverted everyone’s attention to Lisa. She glanced up, smiled, and said, “Oh, hey, Lenny. The guy that took Barry is Paulie Esposito, and the bulldozer guy is Big Mikey. My guess is they’re taking your honey bunny to Coast City.”

The beast awoke within Len’s soul and roared. Panic, fear, rage, and vengeance warred within him, but Len pushed it all down. Not yet. Not now. Now was the time for calm and control. Now was the time for planning.

“Is there some reason you’ve kept this information to yourself?” Len drawled with ill-disguised temper.

Lisa tapped out a message on her phone before she looked at him with impatience. “If I had told you before you arrived, you would have taken off for Coast City without us. You’ve got the perfect team right here to help you get Red back safe and sound. Don’t be stupid, Lenny. Don’t go off on your own.”

Len took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He let the air out slowly and forced his racing thoughts to calm. Lisa may be morally ambiguous, but she was also incredibly intelligent. Her method of delivery needed work, though.

“I know how much you love to hear me say it, so here you go. You’re right, Lisa,” Len forced himself to admit. He added wryly, “I have to say that I’m a little surprised that you care so much about Barry’s welfare. I didn’t think you liked him.”

Lisa affected an injured tone as she replied, “Are you kidding? I _adore_ Barry Allen. We are very close. The two of us are GBFFs.”

Len tracked his gaze over to Caitlin and Cisco hoping for a translation. Caitlin coughed into her hand before she explained, “Gay Best Friends Forever.”

Len didn’t bother offering a reply, because he was well-used to his sister’s odd notions. Instead, he explained the situation to Caitlin and Cisco in as few words as possible. “Barry has been taken by a crime family that used to run things in Coast City. I made the grave mistake of allowing the old boss to live, and now he’s going to try to use Barry to hurt me and take back his territory.”

He hated divulging so much of his business to them, but it couldn’t be helped. He needed their help to get Barry back, because this time, Moretti wouldn’t be caught off guard so easily. If he wanted to get Barry back unscathed, it would be smart to use the tools at his exposal. A tool named Cisco.

 

**********************************

 

An hour later, Len paced restlessly as he waited for Cisco to give him the information he needed. The past hour had been a busy one as he coordinated with his main guy that helped run Coast City, Jack Conroy. Jack was as a gentleman thief, shrewd businessman, and as loyal to Len as they came. After a brief discussion with him, Len was assured that Jack and his men would be rounding up any Moretti sympathizers, and would pass along any news he could find about Barry’s location. Len wasn’t going to wait for Moretti to contact him. That wasn’t part of Len’s plan.

Cisco slipped on the dark souped-up sunglasses that helped amplify his powers and placed his hand on Barry’s Flash suit in order to “vibe” Barry’s current location. Len wanted to yell at him to hurry up, or maybe shake him until he bled, but he held on to his control and allowed Cisco to do his thing. Almost immediately, Cisco stiffened as he was sucked into the shadowy realm where he would be able to observe Barry. Len hated the sensation of Cisco’s meta human powers. Even from three feet away, Len could feel the subsonic waves of the young man’s vibes, and the hairs along Len’s arms stood up in protest.

“I see him!” Cisco announced. “He’s getting out of the car along with the man from the video-“

“Paulie Esposito,” Lisa interrupted helpfully from her position in a spinning desk chair as she tapped away at her phone.

Without even pausing, Cisco continued, “Paulie Esposito is holding a gun on him and marching him toward a back door located in an alley. I see another armed man guarding that door.”

Len’s patience snapped, and as badly as he hated the sensation, he grabbed ahold of Cisco’s arm. Strong vibrations resounded through Len’s body until he was sucked inside Cisco’s vibe. It was an unreal, shadowy realm where they could see and hear everything around them, but they could not be seen in return.

_“You know, if you had asked me nicely, I would have let you come along to begin with,” Cisco complained as Len fell into step next to him as they followed Barry and Paulie through the back door._

_Len didn’t have the time to verbally spar with his sister’s baby daddy. He was too busy scoping out the interior of the kitchen. It looked familiar to him, but he couldn’t place it quite yet. The four armed men playing cards around a table, though, were more than familiar to Len. They were more of Moretti’s men, and Len made a mental note of each of them to add to the ever growing shit list of victims that would suffer for daring to fuck with his Scarlet._

_Len and Cisco followed through the swinging door until they stood in the open dining room of the small restaurant. Sure enough, at the center table, sat Romero Moretti. Len wanted nothing more than to lunge across the table and wrap his hands around the asshole’s throat, but he was nothing more than a whisper of smoke._

_Cisco pointed to the front window where another armed guard prowled. “See that writing on the glass? This is a restaurant called Mama De Luca’s. Do you know where this is located?”_

_Len nodded and replied tersely, “Yes, it’s a property located in Coast City, and one of Moretti’s meeting places.”_

_Len forced himself to look away from Paulie, Barry, and Moretti and to case the interior. Besides the man by the window, there were three other armed guards in the room, and Len memorized their stations and names. He knew every single one of the traitors, and they would all pay for their part in trying to stage a coup at the expense of Barry’s life._

_His attention was drawn back to the center of the action when he heard Barry say,_ “Moretti. You’re making a huge mistake. You have to know that.”

_Cisco snorted and muttered, “Good old Barry. Still trying to save the damned.”_

_Len didn’t reply. He was focused on Moretti as the man smugly replied,_ “On the contrary, Mr. Allen. I’ve had over a year to plan for this day. See, I knew I had to find Coldiron’s weakness. His sister, though she was the obvious answer, was not the right one. It had to be someone that would crush his soul should they die. Someone that I could use to control him before I systematically destroy him and everything he holds dear. Thanks to the viral video that’s been making its way across the internet, I had my answer. That’s you, Mr. Allen.”

_Len snarled, dropped Cisco’s arm, and took two steps forward…_

Len was sucked backward through time and space, his body resounding with vibrations like the banging of a gong, until he came back to himself in the present, standing in the middle of S.T.A.R. Labs, in the heart of Central City. He had been _right there_ with his Scarlet, only an arm’s reach away, and now he was 600 miles away in Central Fucking City.

The beast inside of him roared with arrested justice, and Len allowed the snarl to rip from his throat. “NOOOOO!” He whirled on Cisco and curled his fists into claws. “Why did you bring me back? He was right _fucking_ there! Take. Me. Back,” he demanded through gritted teeth.

Cisco didn’t remove his glasses and kept a wary hand held up between them. “That’s the point, Len,” Cisco snapped, his temper overriding caution. “He was there, but we weren’t. We had to come back here in order to get our bodies there. Understand?”

Len knew he was being unreasonable. He fully understood that everything Cisco had just said made perfect sense. His rational, logical mind already knew all that, but it didn’t matter. When it came to Barry Allen and his safety, Len was not in his right mind. It didn’t matter that Cisco was telling the truth and was trying to help Len. It didn’t matter that he and Cisco were family now, and it didn’t matter that Len needed Cisco’s help to rescue Barry. All he knew was that his Scarlet was in danger, and Len was not right there to stop it.

Len understood all too well the evils that went on in the criminal underworld. He had seen Moretti’s handiwork for himself, and he knew that Barry was in very real danger of being exposed or incapacitated. It was practically guaranteed that he would be seriously injured, because that was how Moretti had controlled the city until Len had come along and put a stop to it. Barry could survive almost anything thanks to the speed force, but he would feel every bit of it. Barry was good at taking a beating, but Moretti was a master at giving them.

His entire body was trembling with emotion and aftershocks from his abrupt departure from the other dimension, and he took a menacing step toward Cisco. “Open a portal. Right the fuck now. I know you can do it, so take me there. _Now_.”

Cisco’s face warred between fear and defiance, but before he could say a word, Lisa’s voice cracked like a whip through the thick tension in the room. “Lenny! Lock it down.” She paused for a second before she added in a gentler tone, “Sharpen the axe before chopping down the tree.”

Len stiffened and froze in place. The beast within him howled and clawed to be set free, but Lisa’s words gave him the strength to push it back down. She was right, and of course she would use Len’s own words against him. How many times had he pulled on her leash with those words? How many times had Len lectured Lisa on the importance of making a plan? He had proven to her over and over throughout their years together that anything could be accomplished if you took the time to make a plan.

Len took several slow, deep breaths until his heartbeat decelerated and the beast was pushed back down under the ice. He couldn’t risk Barry’s life, or even his own, by running off half-cocked. If he played this right, he could rescue Barry and eliminate a cancer in his empire at the same time, and he could do it faster and better with Cisco’s help. He needed to be calm and rational to do that, so he followed Lisa’s command, and he locked it down.

Len straightened his posture and released the muscles in his fists and prepared to eat crow. Len knew he had more than a few faults as a person, but the one he hated the most was his stubborn pride. He needed to put away the childish anger he harbored against Cisco for daring to date his baby sister, and learn to start viewing the young man as his ally and his family. Len didn’t think he could ever actually be friends with Cisco, but he could manage to treat him like family.

Len swallowed and cleared his throat. “Sorry about that, Cisco. I, uh, think I went a little crazy there for moment. Barry is in real danger with those men, and every second that I can’t be there to help him feels like an eternity in hell,” Len explained bluntly.

Cisco blinked in surprise, and he dropped his hand to his side. He reached up to take off the sunglasses with the other and met Len’s steady, blue gaze with his own. A small, cautious smile tipped up the corner of Cisco’s lips as he replied drily, “Yeah, I’ve been there before. Just two weeks ago, actually. But, I didn’t have a clichéd mobster standing in the way. I had you.”

Len took the subtle jab on the chin, and conceded that Cisco had a point. He dipped his chin to acknowledge Cisco’s truth, and replied, “Touché. I need your help, Cisco. I think I have a plan, but it won’t work without your powers. In return, I promise to keep my nose out of your relationship with my sister. You have thoroughly convinced me of your undying devotion to her and the baby, and I will not threaten your life every time she pouts.”

“Hey!” an outraged shout from Lisa interrupted them.

Cisco nodded in ready agreement and said simply, “Good deal, man. Now, let’s get to work.”

 

************************************

 

Half an hour later, Len was ready to go. Cisco had opened a portal to the alley behind Mama De Luca’s Ristorante, and Len had taken position behind a parked car where he could keep his eye on the guard to the back door. All he had to do was wait for word that Cisco was able to snatch another guard through a portal and bring him back to S.T.A.R. Labs and the holding cell. After that, Len would have only minutes to get past the rest of the guards and into the dining room before Moretti tried to kill Barry.

The com device in his ear crackled to life, and Cisco’s tinny voice announced, _“It worked. I’m going back for the other two guards, but make it quick. Barry looks bad.”_

That was all Len needed to hear. He stood to his feet, set the charge on his cold gun, and pulled his goggles down over his eyes. He wore the gear of his villainous past, and he shouldered the mantle of cold, precise violence. There was no room for error, and he could not hesitate to pull the trigger, because neither would his enemy. This wasn’t the time for Len, the Savvy Businessman, and it wasn’t the time for Leonard Snart, Charming Criminal. This was the time to be Captain Cold, Leader of the Rogues and Boss of the Underground. He would seize back control of his empire and of his heart, and he would execute the plan with ruthless efficiency.

Cold didn’t bother to mask his approach by step or by sound. The guard startled upon seeing him stalking toward him, but he didn’t have time to raise his gun before Cold shot him with a concentrated beam of absolute zero at center mass. The guard flew backward through the air before he landed on the pavement with a solid _thump_. Cold didn’t bother stopping to ensure he was dead. He had aimed to kill, and he never missed.

Cold strode through the door, and when he rounded the corner into the kitchen, Moretti’s four idiot nephews leapt to their feet and reached for their weapons. Cold didn’t hesitate as he calmly shot Freddie in the head, Nathan in the throat, Tony in the chest, and Jamie in the shoulder. Jamie fell back, clutching his injured shoulder and opened his mouth to yell, but Cold pulled the trigger and shot him between the eyes.

The swinging door between the kitchen and dining room banged open, and Paulie came through the door gun first. Cold smirked and aimed for Paulie’s gun hand and froze it solid. He didn’t get to die quickly. Moretti’s younger brother, Gianni Moretti, was hot on Paulie’s heels, but Cold didn’t hesitate to put him on ice. Gianni was dead when he collapsed to the floor at Paulie’s feet.

Paulie Esposito was panicking as he cradled the lump of ice that housed his gun and his hand against his rounded belly. According to Len’s plan, Cisco should have removed the other guards, which meant the only one left would be Romero Moretti.

Cold pinned the worm with his icy blue gaze and drawled, “Go tell Romy that Captain Cold would like to have a word with him.” Without waiting for a reply, Cold shoved him out the door.

Cold checked his weapon, and satisfied that he had plenty of charge left to suit his purposes, he took aim at the swinging door, and pulled the trigger. It took only seconds for the absolute zero temperatures to ice over the door. When he was satisfied with the results, he pulled his right leg back and slammed it against brittle barrier, and it shattered with a thunderous crash.

He paused to allow the debris to settle before he strode forward to nudge Paulie with his gun and close the distance between him and his enemy. Cold purposely ignored the bleeding hostage tied to the chair, and lifted his goggles so Romy would have no doubt about who stood before him. He wanted Romy to understand exactly how this was going to go. Cold was the executioner, and Moretti was going to die.

Cold’s smile offered no hope or reprieve to the damned as he said, “He just told you what happened to him, Romy. Cold happened to him. Just like it’s getting ready to happen to you.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Back to Barry's POV now, and the action picks back up where we left it...**

Barry’s out-of-control laughter died. His body continued to throb with pain, and his head swam with blood loss, but none of it mattered. He had never doubted for one moment that Len would save him if things went horribly wrong, and his faith in his love was being repaid with salvation. But this salvation was deadly, and not just to Moretti and his men. This salvation was deadly for Len, because it would cost him a piece of his soul. Barry had forced Len to this moment with his arrogant confidence that normal humans couldn’t stop him, and that decision led directly to Len having to assume his old, villainous identity in order to extricate Barry from danger. Everything Len had done in the past few hours, and every life Len terminated, were all on Barry. And there was absolutely nothing funny about that.

“Coldiron?” Moretti’s shock came through in his voice and in the twitch of the gun barrel in Barry’s cheek. “But…You’re that Captain Cold guy from Central City? I thought he was dead. The news said you were presumed dead!” Moretti protested, his voice getting louder and more agitated.

Barry’s gaze was locked on Len, silently begging him to meet his eyes, but Len wasn’t the one driving this train. The conductor was Cold.

“They presumed wrong,” Cold drawled. “Here’s the situation, Romy. Most of your men are dead, and the remainder of them are being rounded up by Jack Conway and my people. I tried to give you a chance, but you failed. You broke the rules, and now you will pay the consequences. Just like Paulie here.”

Barry blanched as he took in Paulie’s condition. He did not look good. His skin was pasty white and dotted with sweat as he made broken, keening sounds of pain from the block of ice on the end of his arm like a grotesque sledgehammer. Barry knew that Paulie’s hand was already dead, and he knew with a terrible certainty that the rest of him would soon follow.

The gun barrel mashed the soft flesh of Barry’s cheek against the grindstone of his teeth, and he gagged as fresh blood trickled down the back of his throat. “You can’t do shit to me as long as I have your little boy toy,” Moretti shot back with shaky confidence. “You make one move toward me, and I will blow his brains out, and take him with me.”

Len sighed dramatically and reached up to pull his goggles back down over his glacier blue eyes. “The sad thing is that Barry tried to warn you, Moretti. He gave you a chance to walk away from all of it, but you refused to listen.” Len raised his weapon and pointed it at Moretti’s head. “You can’t kill him, Romy. Barry Allen is The Flash, and it would take more than a bullet to the head to kill him. The only thing you’ll do is give him a few days off to recuperate, and give yourself a slower, more painful death.”

Moretti’s laughter was jagged and mocking. “Bullshit. The Flash was your enemy. There’s no way this skinny scientist from CCPD is The Flash, and there’s no way he would be fucking _you_.”

Barry summoned the last of his strength and used the speed force to phase himself out of the ropes. When he had use of his arms once more, he snatched Moretti’s gun from his hand and whipped it away across the expanse of the restaurant. Less than two seconds after Moretti had finished speaking, Barry was free and the gun was gone. Moretti blinked in shock as he opened and closed his empty fist where the gun used to be.

Barry slumped back in his chair with exhaustion and offered Moretti a sad smile. “I tried to save your life, and I failed. Your death is on me, so the least I could do was try to make it easier on you by taking your gun. I’m sorry for my part in this.”

Moretti stumbled back and took shelter behind Barry. He raised his empty hands in front of him in supplication, and his voice was trembling as he begged, “Len…Boss…I-I didn’t know! Please!”

For the first time since he had arrived, Cold met Barry’s eyes, but there was no emotion in their icy depths. “Barry, it’s time for you to leave.”

Barry reached down with both hands to probe tenderly at his injured legs. “I can’t, Len. He shot me in both knees, and the bullets are still in there.”

Cold blinked slowly and returned his frozen gaze to a cowering Moretti. “You shot The Flash in his kneecaps? I guess even fools get lucky once in a while.” Cold paced over two steps and raised his gun once more. “You know what that means, Romy. You know the rules.”

Barry flinched when the cold gun fired twice in rapid succession, and his retinas burned with the bright light of absolute zero that sliced through the air. Moretti screamed, and toppled to the floor to writhe and clutch at his legs. Both of his knees were invisible under the crushing weight of ice, and Moretti’s tortured wails joined Paulie’s pathetic cries for mercy to create a melody of pain and suffering. This was the siren song that heralded their death, and Barry had no choice but to witness it all.

“B-B-Boss!” Paulie chattered. “He made me do it. Don’t kill me, Boss! I’ll be loyal, I swear!”

Cold didn’t even look his way as he replied tightly, “You have never been loyal to anyone in your worthless life, Paulie. You choose the biggest bully on the playground, and hide in his shadow. You chose wrong this time.” Without another word, and without taking his eyes off Moretti, Len swung his gun to the side and shot Paulie in the head.

Barry watched Paulie hit the floor with curious detachment. The goon’s eyes were empty of life, and his crushed skull didn’t even have time to bleed before the deadly ice had cauterized the wound. Barry idly conceded that this method of death of less messy and gory than normal guns, but it was still a horrifying and terrible way to die.

Cold wasted no more time on the inconsequential death of Paulie, and instead paced across the room until he stood over top of Romero Moretti. He looked down into the man’s wide, pleading eyes and said, “This is a faster death, a better death, than you deserve, Romy. You should have been content with what I gave you. Instead, you tried to take something from me. Barry Allen is my heart, and you will never have the opportunity to touch him again.”

Time slowed down for Barry, and he watched as Len’s arm seemed to move in slow motion as he brought the barrel of the cold gun level with Moretti’s heart. The gun shrilled with electric hum and Barry’s vision whited out as Len pulled the trigger. When his vision returned moments later, Moretti was dead from a jagged chunk of ice that had pierced his chest directly through his heart.

Barry’s ears were ringing and his vision tunneled with shock. He felt suspended in a moment of unreality as he gazed around at the carnage that he had caused with his arrogance. It didn’t matter that Len had pulled the trigger. Each and every death that had occurred this day was no one else’s fault but his own.

Cold studied Moretti dispassionately for long moments before he raised his fingers to his right ear and pressed on the com nestled in his ear. “Cisco, the threat has been neutralized. I need you here to help move Barry. Bring Caitlin with you.”

In no time at all, a portal opened up in the dining room, and Cisco and Caitlin jumped through to land on the floor next to Barry. The two of them looked around the dining room with expressions of horror and shock.

“ _Dios m_ _ío,_ they’re dead,” Cisco announced with disbelief. He cut his eyes to where Len stood and added, “Len, Team Flash doesn’t kill people.”

Caitlin was swifter to regain her bearings, and she bent down to check Barry’s pupillary reactions as her fingers gently probed the area around his temple that was crusted with dried blood. Barry offered his friend a wobbly smile and croaked, “Hey, Caity Bug. You get to do surgery today. I’ve got bullets in both knees.”

Caitlin swallowed thickly and silent tears tracked down her cheeks. Her tone was firm and matter-of-fact, though, as she replied, “It will be easier now that we have the meta human cuffs. You won’t feel a thing, I promise.” She leaned in to press a kiss on his forehead before continuing her examination.

“This isn’t Team Flash business, Cisco,” Cold drawled without inflection. “This is _my_ business, _my_ rules, and _my_ justice. I’m not asking you to approve. I just need you to take Barry back to the Labs so I can conclude my business.”

Barry snapped out of his shock at that announcement. “No,” he argued. “Come back with me, Len. Please, just come back with me.”

For a heartbeat of time, Cold’s eyes melted as he categorized every speck of blood that stained Barry’s body from head to toe. That was all it took to freeze him over once more, and he replied, “I have more work to do. Go with your friends. I’ll return when it’s safe.”

Barry could feel the unspoken words hanging between them in the air scented with gunpowder, blood, and ice, and he knew it would do no good to argue. Len wouldn’t return to Central City until he had thoroughly eradicated the threat from Moretti’s faction. He wouldn’t return until Barry was safe.

Cisco wedged his shoulder beneath Barry’s right arm, and Caitlin took the left. Barry grunted with pain as they leveraged him to his feet, and Cisco threw out his free arm to open a portal. He limped forward with help from his friends, and just before he was pulled through it, he searched Len’s expression and reminded him, “Come back to me, Len.” And then he was pulled through time and space, leaving his heart behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Yikes! There's a lot of angst and violence in this one, friends. I'm taking a few hours off to do some DIY crafting with daughter. We are making tee shirt covered boxes for our cats, and crafting some homemade toys for them. I blame YouTube for this. Anyhoo, I'll be back writing more this evening, so I hope to have more to post soon! Peace and love, my friends!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **This isn't exactly how I thought this next chapter would play out, but I think it works. Fair warning: no Len in this chapter, but he'll be back in the next one. Welcome to the enigmatic motivations of Lisa Snart.**

Barry regained consciousness slowly to the sound of someone sniffling and crying in his ear. He blinked his eyes rapidly until he was able to focus and looked around him. He was back at S.T.A.R. Labs in the medical bay, and the lights were dimmed and the windows were black. He was reclining in one of the hospital beds, but he wasn’t alone. He was squashed up against the left bedrail, and Lisa Snart was wedged in beside him with a half-empty bowl of popcorn on her lap, and a small mountain of damp, crumpled up tissues wobbled precariously on Barry’s stomach.

“What? Lisa? What’s wrong?” Barry came awake with a jolt of adrenaline. The used tissues tumbled off the sides of the bed as he sat bolt upright and gripped her arm gently. “What’s happened?”

“G-G-George is dead!” she wailed before burying her head in another tissue and sobbing uncontrollably.

Barry was confused, scared, and still groggy from waking after surgery. “George? Who is George, Lisa?”

Lisa hiccupped and pointed down the length of the bed as she sobbed, “George O’Malley! He just died on the show I’m binge-watching. I loved George! They should have killed off fucking Izzie Stephens instead,” she growled, her mood shifting like quicksilver to violence. “George is a much better character than that trifling hoe.”

Barry blinked and gazed at the glowing television screen mounted to the wall opposite the bed. He groaned loudly and collapsed back on the bed. “God, Lisa! You scared the shit out of me! I thought something had happened to Len, but nooooo. You’re watching ‘Grey’s Anatomy’.” Barry closed his eyes and concentrated on getting his heartbeat to slow for a moment before adding, “I cried during that episode, too.”

Lisa used the remote to pause her show, and maneuvered herself until she was lying on her side facing Barry with the popcorn bowl balanced between them. She dug out a few kernels and popped them into her mouth and crunched them as she said, “Don’t worry, Red. Lenny texted me, and everything is under control in Coast City. He should be here any time now.”

Barry sighed and allowed himself to fully relax back into the bed. That was good, right? He needed to see Len again, need to tell him…what? What could he possibly say to Len after what had happened today? Should he apologize for willingly walking into his enemy’s clutches? Should he say he was sorry for forcing Len to the place where he had to kill in order to rescue him? How would he even begin?

Barry rolled his head to the side to face Len’s sister. “Lisa, why are you in my hospital bed? And where is Cisco and Caitlin?”

Lisa snuggled down further into the pillow and crunched more popcorn. “Because the chair isn’t as comfortable, and you put you off a lot of heat. I was cold,” she replied simply before adding, “I sent my honey bunnies off to get some food for us. Really, though, I just wanted to talk to you alone before Lenny comes back.”

Barry figured as much. Even though Lisa’s personality appeared to be chaotic and unpredictable, Barry had found through experience that Lisa always had a reason for every action and word. Unfortunately, Lisa’s thought process wasn’t always on the same track as the rest of humanity. Over the past several months, Barry had worked harder at understanding the mercurial woman than he had at saving the city from criminal meta humans. Their motivations were always easy to understand, but Lisa’s remained mostly a mystery that Barry felt compelled to solve.

Barry watched the woman warily and said, “You wanted to talk to me alone? I’m guessing this about your brother.”

She nodded solemnly against the pillow, picked up some popcorn, and brought it to Barry’s lips. Cautiously, he opened his mouth, and she shoved it inside before retrieving her own bite of the snack. “Exactly. See, I know what you’re thinking right now, and you need to stop it before Lenny gets back.”

Barry finished chewing his crumbled impromptu snack and reached into the bowl for more. “How can you possibly know what I’m thinking right now, Lisa? We only hang out as a group, and you usually spend that time making me the butt of your jokes and saying anything outrageous that will make me uncomfortable. We haven’t exactly shared any heart-to-heart conversations over popcorn before.”

Lisa offered him a pitying smile and reached out to pat Barry on the cheek with buttery fingers. “Oh, Red. You’re so cute, it’s nauseating. I know exactly who you are and how you think, because you wear your gigantic, soft heart on your sleeve for all to see. You’re not exactly a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma, you know.”

Barry didn’t know whether to be offended or if he should take that as a compliment. That was always the issue with Lisa. Figuring out her motivation. “Did you just quote Winston Churchill to me?”

Lisa shot him a peeved glare and flicked a popcorn at his face. “Don’t be an ass, Barry, and stop trying to change the subject. I know you’re blaming yourself for what happened today, and thinking that it’s your fault that Len had to kill all those people. You don’t want to blame him for pulling the trigger because you love him, so you blame yourself. I’m here to tell you that if you say that to Len, you will only make him feel worse.”

The popcorn turned to dust on Barry’s tongue and his mouth hung open. He snapped it closed and replied, “What the…how did you know?”

Lisa rolled her bright blue eyes and reached over to poke Barry’s left pec. “Gigantic, squishy heart and a martyr complex. It doesn’t take a scientist to figure it out, Red,” Lisa replied drily. Her expression sobered and she continued, “Let me break down the facts for you so you understand this situation perfectly. Moretti has been a thorn in Len’s side since the moment we arrived in Coast City. It didn’t take us long to learn that he was not a nice guy. He killed anyone who stood in his way, and then he killed their families as a message. He’s killed children, women, and men without discriminating. He’s raped countless young women who were too afraid of his wrath to report him, and he encouraged his family to have the same attitude. He ruled Coast City with fear and blood. Until Lenny came along and put a stop to it.”

Barry’s stomach roiled as the images her words conjured flipped through his brain like a grotesque slide show. “But, that night in the warehouse-“

“Should never have ended the way it did,” she interrupted him rudely. Her gaze pinned Barry to the spot and she continued, “Moretti and his men should have died that night. Len knew that Romy would never change and he also knew that Moretti would never stop trying to seize back control, but Len held back from killing him because _you_ were there. He didn’t want you to think of him as a monster, so he allowed Moretti to live and gave him another chance to change.”

Barry couldn’t stand the accusatory light in Lisa’s eyes, so he dropped his gaze to the now empty bowl of popcorn littered with unpopped kernels. “He didn’t change, did he?”

“No,” Lisa snapped. “He just got better at hiding the bodies and intimidating witnesses all while he actively worked against Len’s authority and plotted to kill him.” Lisa gripped Barry’s chin and forced him to meet her eyes. “You are feeling guilty about the wrong thing, Barry. If you insist on blaming yourself for the deaths of others, then don’t you dare waste it on Moretti and his men. They don’t deserve it. Blame yourself for every family that was slaughtered and every young girl that was raped by those bastards since the night Len allowed them to live because of you.”

Barry’s heart fractured and cracked open, sending hot, salty tears streaking down his face. “I’m sorry, Lisa. I didn’t know. God! I didn’t know.”

Lisa’s fierce expression melted and she pulled Barry’s face down to press it against the cleavage spilling out of her low-cut tank top. Her greasy fingers carded through his hair as she crooned, “I know, Red. That’s the problem with having a gigantic, squishy heart. It blinds you to the fact that not all deaths are created equal. That’s why you and Lenny make such a good pair. You were born to save and rescue people from darkness. But, Lenny? He was born to end those that can’t be saved and who do nothing but create more darkness. You are a perfectly balanced pair, like a yin yang, but you will tip the scales if you try to pull Len too hard toward your side of the circle. Let him handle the darkness that you can’t save, and focus on those that want to be saved. Make sense?”

“Oddly enough, it does,” Barry conceded from the depths of Lisa’s boobs. He pulled back from her embrace and settled himself on his pillow once more. “I don’t blame Len for killing Moretti and his men. I just don’t want Len to think that I’m angry or upset with him about it.”

Lisa settled the empty bowl on the neighboring table and arranged herself until she was under the covers with Barry and snuggled into his side. She rested her head on his chest and picked up the remote before she replied, “Good. My plan worked. I love when that happens, because it doesn’t always work out the way I think it will.”

Barry battled a combination of awkwardness at cuddling his lover’s sister and a sense of foreboding at her words. “What plan, Lisa?”

She tilted her head up to offer Barry a beatific smile. “Sharing the video of you and Lenny on the internet. I was hoping that it would get back to Moretti, and that he would use you to try to stage his comeback. It worked!”

Barry closed his eyes and groaned. Every time he thought he had a grasp on Lisa’s train of thought, he derailed. “So, you’re trying to tell me that you shared that video of us kissing on the internet so that Moretti would purposely abduct me? That doesn’t even make sense.”

Lisa snorted and began pushing buttons on the remote to cue up the next episode of her show. “Of course it does! Part of the reason Lenny moved back to Central City was to keep you out of Coast City and away from Moretti’s prying eyes. He didn’t want to give him the opportunity to find out about you. You, Red, are Lenny’s biggest weakness. The only thing that would force Lenny to stamp him out once and for all was if Moretti had his claws in you,” she replied condescendingly. “The added bonus was that it went viral. Even George Takei shared it on his Facebook page. You’re internet famous, Barry!”

Barry sighed heavily and had to force his fingers not to wrap around Lisa’s throat. Only she would think of this day as a success. He counted to ten, relaxed his tense muscles, and settled in to wait for Len to arrive. It was the only thing he could do at the present time, so he wrapped one arm around Lisa’s back and propped the other one behind his head, and settled in to rewatch old episodes of his favorite show with his lover’s strange, pregnant little sister.

They watched the show in silence for several minutes before Lisa poked Barry in the ribs. “Hey, Red. Have you ever been to Portland, Oregon?”

Barry wrinkled his eyebrow with confusion. “No, why?”

Lisa’s blue eyes twinkled with excitement as she explained, “There’s this place there called ‘Voodoo Doughnut.’ I saw it on TV when I was watching the Food Network. They have the neatest donuts there. They have this one shaped like a voodoo doll, some topped with Oreos and breakfast cereal, and they even have one shaped like a cock and balls. Bet you would like that one, huh? Huh?” she teased with a wicked smile.

Barry sighed heavily and rolled his eyes. “Lisa, do you want me to run to Portland to get you some donuts?”

Lisa squealed with delight and hugged Barry around his waist. “Yes! I knew you would offer to go for me. You can’t help it, can you? You and your big, squishy heart love me and the jelly bean growing inside me. And we both want a dozen donuts, different flavors, but make sure the voodoo doll one is in there. I want to post a picture to Instagram of it.”

Barry chuckled with resignation and amusement. “Fine, I’ll go first thing in the morning. I want to see Len first, and then I will fetch your donuts.” He paused for a thoughtful moment before adding, “This is going to be a recurring theme over the next nine months, isn’t it? I’m just here to be your delivery boy for every odd craving that comes your way, aren’t I?”

Lisa pressed a quick kiss against Barry’s chest and resumed her comfy position to watch her show. “Don’t be silly, Red. Of course you will. That’s what GBFFs are for.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **I can't help it. I love Lisa Snart. I hope you enjoyed this slightly more lighthearted chapter. The next one will be the last in this story, but you should get plenty of feels from Len and Barry's reunion! Have a wonderful Sunday, everyone! I've got cleaning to do. Apparently, crafting homemade cat toys is a messy business.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Not gonna lie. I struggled with this one. See my notes at the end.**

Sometime after the third episode of “Grey’s Anatomy,” Barry must have fallen asleep again, because he was startled awake by the touch of a hand against his cheek. He blinked the sleep from his eyes until he was able to focus on the familiar face of Len standing over top of him.

“Len,” Barry breathed with a combination of relief and yearning.

Len began to pull his hand away from where he cradled Barry’s jaw in his palm, but Barry captured it and turned his face into the familiar heat and scent of his love. Len’s thumb brushed gently along Barry’s cheekbone as he murmured, “How are you feeling, Scarlet?”

“Better now that you’re here,” Barry answered just as softly. “Honestly, I feel perfectly fine, but Caitlin won’t let me out of the bed until morning. You can’t even see the scars from the knee surgeries anymore.”

Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say, because Len’s expression hardened and he dropped his hand before taking a step back from the bed. Barry scrambled to sit up and reached out to stop him. “Don’t go!” he pleaded desperately. Softening his tone, he added, “Please, just…stay.”

Len sighed heavily and walked back over to sit on the edge of the bed by Barry’s hip, and he picked up Barry’s hand to cradle it between his own. Barry settled back against his pillow, and soaked up the fresh, masculine scent that tickled his nose from Len’s shower gel. The room was still dark, and a quick glance at the clock told him it was almost 2 o’clock in the morning. There was no sign of Caitlin, Cisco, or his newly-minted GBFF, and he breathed a sigh of relief that he was finally alone with his love.

The silence between them grew taut and uncomfortable with everything left unsaid between them. Barry had no idea what was going through Len’s mind right now, because he wouldn’t look at Barry. Len always looked Barry in the eyes when they talked, but now, he was studying Barry’s palm as if he could read the future from its lines. Was he angry with Barry for allowing himself to be captured so easily? Was he afraid that Barry would look at him differently after doing what had to be done? Was he remembering the last time he had killed someone in front of Barry? Yes, Barry had witnessed Len kill before during the disastrous night Len had killed his own father, but that was before…everything.

This time, Barry had witnessed Len execute two men in very cold blood. This was the first time since they had started their relationship that Len had stepped beyond Barry’s moral line in the sand. Barry knew that Len was still a criminal. He knew that Len broke the law on a daily basis, and sometimes twice on Sundays, but Barry had always been able to turn a blind eye and trust that Len would never do something truly evil. That was not Len, and never had been. Barry had read every one of those files on Leonard Snart before he had handed them over back when they had been enemies, and nothing in the laundry list of crimes spoke of harm to the innocent. But to Barry, murder had always been murder, and that wasn’t just a line in the sand to him. That was the Grand Canyon of lines that Barry didn’t think he could ever cross himself.

Barry knew that this was a pivotal moment in their relationship. He knew with a soul-deep certainty that what happened next would determine the course of their future together. They’d had their share of disagreements and spats over the past year, but this was the first time that a bomb of this magnitude had exploded their bubble of happiness. Barry was afraid to say the wrong thing, afraid to even blink, with the fear that Len would disappear again. But, Barry had no idea what to do next, because Len still wouldn’t look at him, and Barry couldn’t read the cold, granite features of his love.

“Say something, Scarlet,” Len’s ragged whisper broke the silence. “Just say it.”

Barry swallowed past the ball of sand in his throat and croaked, “Thank you.”

Len’s head snapped up and he finally met Barry’s eyes with suspicion. “What? Why would you thank me for what I did? I didn’t have to kill those men tonight. I could have had them arrested and sent to prison, but I killed them. I _killed_ them, Barry.”

Len tried to pull his hand away from Barry’s, but he snatched it back and refused to let go. He met Len’s glacial gaze with his own determined one. “I know exactly what you did, Len. You ended a threat. Permanently. Those men didn’t want to be saved. They didn’t want to change and do better. They only wanted to hurt and destroy, and you stopped them for good. Thank you for being able to do _whatever_ is necessary to keep me, and others, safe, and for being able to do what I can’t. Thank you for rescuing me from my arrogant mistake, and preventing it from ever happening again. Most of all, thank you for loving me enough to come back to me despite it all.”

Len blinked his eyes rapidly, and his throat bobbed with emotion. He ducked his head and rubbed his eyes with his free hand for a long, tense moment before he finally replied, “I, uh, wasn’t quite expecting that reaction, so, you’ll have to give me a minute.” He chuckled darkly as he scrubbed at the copious streams of melted ice that ran down from his eyes.

Barry’s heart broke open, and he reached out and pulled Len down into his embrace. Len landed against Barry’s chest, and Barry held on to Len tight as he whispered urgently, “No, Len. I want every minute, every second of you that I can get, both good and bad.”

Len grabbed fistfuls of Barry’s hospital gown as he buried his face in Barry's chest and shuddered with harsh, ugly cries. Barry pulled Len closer, dragged him up on to the bed beside him, and wrapped himself around Len like a human security blanket. Len was always so controlled and careful that when he showed any strong emotion at all, it was usually explosive and savage in nature like a wild, starving jaguar. Barry had only witnessed it a handful of times, but he counted each one of them like rare gems. This time would be counted and protected like a diamond.

It took some time for Len to regain control himself once more, but Barry didn’t mind. It gave him the opportunity to hold him, comfort him, touch him, and smell him. He hated that Len was suffering, but he knew that this time, Len wouldn’t be alone. Barry was here, and he would be there every single time in the future. Len would never have to face things alone again.

When the storm calmed and Len grew quiet, Barry whispered, “It’s your turn. Say something, Len.”

Len cleared his throat, but he didn’t lift his head from Barry’s chest as he rumbled hesitantly, “I was so fucking scared, Scarlet. Not so much of you being hurt, even though that was a big part of it. I was scared that you wouldn’t understand why I did what I did to Moretti and his men, and that you would look at me and only see a murderer. I was scared that you would finally come to your senses and realize that I’m not good enough for you and never will be.” He paused to take a shaky breath before continuing, “I’m not sorry I did it. In fact, I wish I had wiped them all out that night in the warehouse, but I held back out of fear. Fear of losing you.”

Barry rubbed his nose and lips across the short-cropped, crisp hairs on Len’s head as he said, “You’re not going to lose me, Len. Don’t you understand? I love you, and that means forever. In fact, I think it’s physiologically impossible for me to ever love anyone else but you, because we complete each other.” Barry paused to chuckle before saying, “In fact, your sister explained it all to me in her own unique way. She said we were a perfect pair, like a yin yang. We give each other balance.”

Len shifted in his arms until he was able to slide his leg high between Barry’s thighs before wrapping his arms around Barry’s back so they were pressed as closely together as possible. Len’s tone was decidedly relieved as he teased, “Are you sure that she wasn’t just saying that because she wanted something from you?”

Barry thought very seriously about it for half a second before he replied, “No, I think she really meant it. In her own creative way, I think Lisa really likes me.”

Len snorted from the depths of Barry’s chest and mumbled, “Be afraid, Scarlet. Be very afraid.”

Barry’s heart felt as if it were floating inside his chest. If Len was joking, then everything would be just fine. At least, he hoped it would be after he told Len what else his sister had done. Barry’s chuckles died in his throat and his tone was sober when he said, “Len, there’s something I need to tell you.”

Len didn’t tense up like Barry was expecting. Instead, he moved his leg higher until he was dangerously close to Barry’s sack. “Is this about the video?” he asked, as his fingers nimbly plucked at the ties on the back of Barry’s gown.

Barry tried not to allow himself to be distracted by Len’s roving fingertips, and doggedly pressed forward. “Yeah, about that…” he trailed off as Len’s palms found their way beneath the waistband of his boxer briefs.

Len hummed deep in his throat and slowly ground his pelvis against Barry’s while he replied, “Lisa posted it. I already know, Scarlet.”

Barry snapped out of the simmering, sexual daze that never failed to happen when he was this close to Len. “How did you know? I just found out about it from her a few hours ago.”

Len’s wicked fingers kneaded and massaged Barry’s ass as he replied, “Cisco did some digging while you were recovering from surgery. He called and told me about it before I even made it back to the city.”

Barry felt oddly deflated. Well, most of him did. “Don’t be too hard on her, Len. I think her intentions were ultimately good in a weird, twisted sort of way.”

Len’s breath steamed the thin cotton of his hospital gown as he answered, “What she did was reckless and dangerous, and you got hurt. She has to answer for that, but I agree with you. She didn’t do it maliciously to hurt either of us. I’m still going to wring her neck if she ever does something like that again, though.”

Barry reached down and began to pull Len’s black tee shirt over his head. “That’s my GBFF you’re threatening there, buddy. We cuddle, eat popcorn, and watch Netflix together now.”

Len tossed his shirt off over his head and Barry watched it land precariously on top of an IV stand as he got rid of his untied hospital gown. “Scarlet, stop talking about my sister while we’re getting naked,” Len commanded right before he pulled Barry down into a sloppy kiss.

Barry melted into Len’s lips and luxuriated in the hot taste of the coffee and toothpaste on his tongue. Touching him, tasting him, and loving him were all Barry wanted, all that he needed. It didn’t matter that the two of them were from different worlds of light and dark. It didn’t matter that Barry was The Flash and Len was Captain Cold. All that mattered was that he trusted Len with every cell in his body. Len was a good man with big, squishy heart of his own, but his had been beaten and abused. It was Barry’s job to guard that heart and keep anyone from ever hurting him again, especially Len himself.

Len pulled away to breathe with jagged exhalations against Barry’s neck. Their bodies were plastered together down to the buckle of Len’s belt, and all Barry could think about was that he wanted Len to press him into the mattress and fuck him hard.

Len pulled back until he could meet Barry’s gaze for a long, intense moment. “We still have a lot to discuss, Scarlet. Not just about what happened yesterday, but about a lot of things. I keep secrets from you, Barry.”

Barry’s heart skipped a beat, and he nodded. “I know you do, Len, because I’ve let you. You didn’t trust me to understand, and I didn’t trust me to understand, either, so I looked the other way. We have to be honest with each other, or we’ll end up in even worse situations than we were yesterday. Let me in, Len. You can’t scare me away.”

Barry could feel Len’s heartbeat echoing across his skin as Len searched his expression. Len’s eyebrow arched and his lips curled in that familiar, sexy smirk as he replied, “You asked for it, Scarlet. I can’t deny you anything, and I think you know that. I have just one condition.”

Barry’s cock throbbed from where it was trapped between them, and he pressed himself harder against Len for relief from the ache. “Name it,” Barry gasped as Len began to bite down the column of his neck.

“We talk later, after sex and sleep, in that order,” Len demanded right before he captured Barry’s small, puckered nipple between his teeth.

Barry cried out and pushed his chest deeper into Len’s mouth. “We talk later, after sex and sleep, and donuts. I promised Lisa,” Barry countered with a gasp.

“Deal,” Len purred next to his ear before he pressed Barry down into the bed. “I hope you know how to disable Cisco’s surveillance cameras, because I really don’t want Lisa to get a hold of this footage.”

Barry grinned and was gone in a flash. Less than two seconds later, he back on the bed underneath Len, and completely naked. “Done. Where were we?” he asked as he wrapped his legs around Len’s calves and pulled him in to his body.

Len’s breath washed over Barry’s lips with a cool, peppermint breeze as he replied, “Talking later, sex now, then sleep, followed by donuts.”

Barry reached between them to unfasten Len’s belt and unzip his jeans. “It's a deal,” he breathed as he pulled Len down for another kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get this chapter to turn out the way I wanted. I think it's because there is still some unfinished emotional business between Len and Barry, but I think it has to spill over into a new story. I'm taking a few days off to marinate about it, and hopefully will come up with the next ficlet in this series that will help address the secrets that Len still keeps from Barry. I still feel like there is so much more to explore with these two, so wish me luck in figuring it out! Until then, I want to thank each and every one of you that left kudos and comments. To my awesome friends that chat with me each chapter, I love you guys! You rock my socks off!**


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